


Explorers of the Blue

by Mayor_Ravioli



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time & Explorers of Darkness & Explorers of Sky
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Amnesia, DO NOT SHIP, F/M, Fighting, Kidnapping, M/M, Occasional Spanish, Stealing, War, azura and grovyle are siblings, dark themes, i'll add more tags if needed, sword fights, the pirate AU no one asked for
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-07-06
Packaged: 2020-06-02 12:37:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19441621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mayor_Ravioli/pseuds/Mayor_Ravioli
Summary: An AU of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of SkyNiko was a thief, and Azura was a girl with no memory. After accidentally stowing away on a pirate ship, they find themselves becoming crew members  of The Perfect Apple, one of the most feared pirate ships known. But things aren't what they seem, and soon Azura's forgotten past comes back to bite her as the crew suddenly finds themselves a part of something they wanted nothing to do with.





	1. A Storm at Sea

**Author's Note:**

> Azura- Hero/Piplup  
> Niko- Partner/Meowth  
> Hemlock- Koffing  
> Oleander- Zubat  
> Also, I don't really know Spanish. Please tell me if there's any mistakes so I can fix it as soon as possible!

In the world, there exists an island, and on that island, a kingdom named Esperanza. A kingdom ruled by a kind and benevolent queen. For years the kingdom prospered, with the citizens being very content with their way of life. Everyone within it were happy, and life, it seemed, couldn’t be better. Eventually the queen even had two children, a prince and a princess, and the future for all those that lived in the kingdom seemed bright and hopeful. 

However, not too far from this kingdom, there was another island, with another kingdom called Rovina. But this kingdom was ruled by a controlling and unforgiving king. Harsh in his rule, the king ruled over his people with an iron fist having no mercy for his subjects much less his own sons. But as time went on the king wasn’t happy with what he had. He realized that his kingdom was too small, and his eyes landed upon another kingdom.

Soon, the king waged war against the queen’s kingdom. Him fighting desperately for power, while she fought for her citizens and their home.

Years continued to pass, and finally the two kingdoms decided to negotiate an end to the war.

At least, that’s what the queen thought.

The night before they were supposed to negotiate, the king’s eldest son broke into the queen’s daughter’s room. He kidnapped her, and brought her out to the cliffside. There, he threw her over the edge of the cliff, and in the dark of the night he and his kingdom left before any negotiations could take place. With royal blood on their hands.

And this is when our story begins. 

* * *

  
“STOP! THIEF!”

Niko winced as all of the eyes in the marketplace were directed towards him as the overbearingly loud voice proclaimed him as a thief. He glanced behind him, giving the man an apologetic grin.

“It’s just some pocket change!” Niko reminded him, “Nothing to get too upset about!” 

Turning back around, Niko’s eyes began to dart around as he tried to find an escape. He could feel hands reaching out to try and grab him, but at that point in his life he was well accustomed to people trying to catch him, so dodging them was easy.

He didn’t know if he should consider that a good thing, or a sad thing.

Suddenly… he spotted it. The perfect escape route. He glanced back behind him to get a glance towards his perused before taking a sharp right turn into a nearby alley. Hoping that it would lead to more alleys, or at least, doors he could escape into.

Instead he ran into an entirely new problem.

“Well, well, well… look at who we have here.”

“H-Hemlock, Oleander… fancy seeing you two here.” Niko chuckled awkwardly as he stumbled away from the guards. 

Hemlock and Oleander were the two guards put in charge of the marketplace, and many wondered why they had gotten the job in the first place. They were known for being cruel, unhygienic, and crass towards the people they were supposed to protect. (There were also rumors floating around that Oleander might even be blind.) Some suspected they only got the job because they would follow any order the captain gave them. No matter how cruel and unjust it may be.

“I happened to overhear something about a thief,” Hemlock smirked as he walked forward. “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you, Niko?”

“M-Me?” Niko asked, “What gives you that idea?”

“Oh… I don’t know. Maybe the fact that you’ve been arrested for stealing on a near daily basis?” Hemlock answered. “The gallows have been asking for you for awhile, maybe today they’ll finally get their wish granted.”

“Hmm… tempting…” Niko hummed, looking around for anyway out of his current situation. “But I don’t think so.”

“Oh yeah?” Hemlock asked, “Well I say other-“

As Hemlock was reaching towards him, Niko quickly ducked under his arm. Sprinting as fast as he could to try and get away.

“Get him!”

At Hemlock’s command, Oleander stepped in front of Niko to try and grab him. But seeing that, Niko changed his direction so that he was going toward the wall before he leapt. Hand outstretched, Niko grabbed only one of the small balconies on a home’s window, and pulled himself up.

Once he was over the bars, Niko grinned down at the two, before his head snapped over towards the way he had entered the alleyway. His eyes meeting the furious eyes of his current thieving victim.

The sandy blond pulled himself onto the fencing that surrounded the balcony, giving those looking up at him a salute.

“Adiós!”

And with that he leapt again, grabbing the edge of the roof, he used that to pull himself on top of it. Giving one last look towards his pursuers, he grinned before taking off. Running along the roof, taking quick jumps every so often as he leapt over the spaces between buildings and homes. 

Until, finally, he got away from those that were chasing him.

After making absolute certain that he had gotten away, Niko found an abandoned alleyway where boxes were piled up against the side of the building. Using those boxes, Niko safely got down from the roof. Glancing back and forth to make certain no one spotted him, he opened the nearest door and ducked inside. 

The building he entered was a cantina, far enough from the docks that any… unsavory folk wouldn’t bother to go all the way to, but close enough that business was good. Even at this hour there were many patrons hanging around. Drinking and eating. The room full of laughter, talking, and as always, music.

Niko glanced towards the little makeshift stage that was in the room, and smiled. Ducking his head, Niko found an empty table, and sat down. He eyes watching as his only friend in the town, a young woman by the name of Faye, played her guitar. Her voice was soft, allowing patrons to make background music while they were still able to keep their focus on who they were with and what they were doing. It was a soft, pretty thing, a traditional song Niko could faintly remember his mother singing to him as she sent him to bed.

That was before…

Niko shook his head, no need to remember that. 

At one point during her song, Faye looked up. Her eyes, a bright green meeting his own dark brown ones. She smirked at him, giving him a quick wink before she finished her song. Despite no one else paying attention, Niko clapped for her as she set aside her guitar. Taking a quick hop off of the stage as she went over to greet him. 

“Niko, what a surprise.” She smiled as she took the seat opposite of him at the table. “So what’d you do this time?” 

“Nicked a small purse.” Niko answered, pulling his prize out of his pocket to toss it in the air. “Got enough in here to last me a few days.” He put the purse away, “I was wondering, now that I money maybe we could… you know...?”

Faye laughed, “Are you asking me on a date?” She teased.

“Wha… No! No!” Niko shook his head, “I mean… you’re a nice girl and all. But, no. Just as friends, amigos!” 

“I was just teasing you, Niko.” Faye said, watching as he visibly relaxed. She smiled at him for a moment, before her smile formed into a slight frown. “But I’ll have to say no.”

“Oh…” Niko said, hoping that his disappointment didn’t show through.

“I’m sorry,” Faye apologized, “It’s just… I heard rumors that my papa’s ship docked today, and if they’re true I don’t want to be gone when he gets here…” At that Faye glanced over towards the door of the cantina. Niko followed her gaze towards the closed door, before glancing over towards her. 

While Niko had gotten Faye to hang out with him a few times, a lot of the times when he asked that was her excuse. He had never met her father, only hearing about him through Faye’s mouth alone. Apparently he was a sailor, though even Faye couldn’t say who or what he was sailing for. He left when she was only seven, with a promise that he would stop by whenever he was able to. And while Faye was always certain when she turned his offers of companionship down that her father would be stopping by, Niko couldn’t help but wonder if he actually did stop by, or what she was saying was a daughter’s false hope for a father that abandoned her years ago.

“In that case… I should probably get going.” Niko said, standing from his seat. “I don’t want to be hanging around in case the owner of this pouch comes looking.”

Faye nodded, “I’ll see you out.” She said, standing up. 

The walked to the front door of the cantina, and stepped outside. Closing the door to the laughter and talking that was inside. They faced each other, the sunlight hitting Faye at just the right angle that even took Niko’s breath away. 

He was being honest when he said she was just a friend, but even Niko couldn’t deny her beauty. Her hair was a deep black, cut short so that her locks wouldn’t get in the way while she played her guitar. Though woven in the black were light green ribbons. Her dress was a simple thing, the standard every-day wear of a village woman, but was soft pink in color that popped against the brown of her skin. It was a wonder that a girl like her wasn’t yet married, but when Niko asked once she had just smiled at him. Her gaze looking off towards the direction of the palace as she simply said that she was just looking for the right person. 

“I can’t stay out here for too long,” Faye told him, taking one of his hands. “My aunt’s probably wondering where I am.” She smiled, “Try not to get into any trouble today, okay Niko?”

“Trouble?” Niko laughed, “You’re only in trouble when you get caught.” He informed her, which caused her own musical laughter to fill through the air.

“Okay, wise guy. Adiós, Niko.”

“Adiós, Faye.” Niko answered back, giving her one last wave goodbye before he took off. His feet pounding against the stone on the ground as he ran away towards his favorite place in the whole wide world.

* * *

The sound of seagulls was what alerted Niko that he had arrived at his destination. As his run slowed to a run, and then to a walk as he made his way across the sandy beach. He tilted his head up, taking a deep breath of the ocean air. A small smile plastering itself onto his face. 

This was the place he always went to. Rain or shine. Happy or sad. It wasn’t the main beach, no, that place was always full of people. Instead it was a small little thing, hidden away by rocks and trees. 

It was peaceful, and as Niko watched the sun slowly fall behind the horizon, just as beautiful.

Niko stepped towards the roaring waves, glancing down at the reflection that greeted him. 

His hair, was a sandy blonde color, and his skin pale. Far more paler than those that lived here. Betraying him in telling all who saw him that he was a foreigner. Though none knew where he was from.

With the world being the way it was, Niko prayed no one would be able to guess. 

Not wanting to look at himself for much longing, Niko pulled his head away. Looking over towards his left.

His eyes widened. 

“Wha… There… Someone’s collapsed on the sand!” Niko exclaimed for none that could hear him, though he cared not. He ran towards the form that he had spotted. Kneeling down he held a trembling hand out, pausing for a moment before he placed it upon her shoulder.

“Hola señorita.” He greeted, shaking her shoulder, hoping that she would answer him. “Please wake up! Don’t be dead!”

She didn’t answer, and defeated, Niko sat back as he observed her. 

Her hair was a dark brown, the locks swirled around her head. Though they were dry now, Niko could tell that they had once been wet. Her skin was brown as well, though not as dark as Faye’s. Though what really caught Niko’s attention were her clothes. 

While he could tell they were a nightgown, even for sleeping her clothes were elaborate… expensive. That nightgown probably cost more than all of the money Niko had ever held in his hand throughout his entire life. It was a deep blue in color, with white detailing. And on her feet were yellow slippers. 

“S-Señorita?” Niko asked, hoping for an answer, though he was afraid he would get none.

And then…

A cough.

Niko sat up, eyes wide as the woman he had found coughed. Her eyes fluttering open, showing Nico a deep blue, almost as deep as that on her nightgown.

She turned over, away from him, as she continued to cough.

“Are… Are you okay?” Niko asked, hovering an awkward hand over her form.

The woman turned over, her half-lidded eyes meeting his own.

“Who…” She started, before she began to cough again. Water spitting out of her mouth.

“Ah! Do you… Do you need help? A doctor? Should I go get a doctor?”

She shook her head, holding up a hand to stop the water that dripped out. There was a moment’s pause as the coughing stop, and then she lowered her hand.

“I… I’m fine.” She answered.

“That’s good!” With the knowledge that the woman was alive, Niko hopped to his feet. Holding out a hand for her to take, which she did. Standing, Niko found that she was around the same height as he was. 

“So… how did you get here?” Niko asked.

“I… I don’t know…” She answered with a frown, she looked out towards the sea, placing a hand on her head. “I… I don’t think I remember… anything…”

“You don’t…?” Niko frowned, “Surely you do! Umm… how old are you?”

“I don’t know.”

“You have to! You… You look close to my age.” Niko observed, “I’m 23, surely that can remind you of something!”

She shook her head.

“Oh… okay.” What else could she remember, “How about… your name! Surely you remember your name!”

“I’m sorry, but I really do-” Suddenly she paused, her eyes lighting up. “Azura.”

“What?”

“Azura. That’s my name.” She answered him. 

“Azura…” Niko copied, frowning. That name sounded familiar, but for the life of him he couldn’t place it. He shook it off, “Well, Azura. Even if you don’t know who you are, someone has to! I’ll bring you to the Marketplace, someone has to know you there!”

Azura paused for a moment, before she nodded. “Alright.” 

Niko held out an arm for her to take, which she did. As the two began to make their way out of the beach, Niko remembered something important.

“Oh, right! Sorry for being so rude, my name’s Niko.” He told her. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Niko.”

* * *

Finding someone who knew Azura was better said than done. Especially with Niko’s reputation. Whenever they would walk up to someone that person wouldn’t even pay attention to them. Nervously looking around to find the best escape before Niko stole from them.

And going to the guards was out of the question considering Hemlock and Oleander were out for Niko’s blood. (Neck technically, since they said they were going to hang him.) 

And even if they did manage to stop someone long enough for them to listen, that person was usually just a sailor that didn’t know who Niko was, much less Azura. 

“Gosh, I’m sorry, but I don’t know her. But I’m certain you’ll find someone who does, yup!” One kind sailor had encouraged them, before he was called for by a very tall and very thin blonde woman. 

But despite his encouragement, Niko and Azura were losing hope.

Taking a break on one of the benches that littered the marketplace, Niko gave Azura an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry,” he told her, wringing his hands. “I was sure there’s someone who might know you…”

“It’s fine,” Azura had assured him, her eyes distant as she watched the people mill around. 

“May… Maybe we could go to the palace?” Niko suggested, “Someone there might have more power to help. Maybe you could even see the prince! The queen’s children are barely ever seen in public, so that could be cool!”

“Maybe…”

The two fell into a comfortable silence then, both lost in their own thoughts. Niko in how he could help the woman, and Azura trying her hardest to remember even just one more thing about herself.

“There he is!”

Niko jumped, eyes widening as he looked to the side and saw Hemlock pointing a finger right at him.

“Crap!” Niko cried, jumping to his feet. Azura followed, though confusion was etched upon her face.

“What’s going on?” She asked, looking over towards the two guards that were nearing. “Who are they?”

“Two people who very much want me dead.” Niko answered, and in a state of panic he grabbed her hand and before she could do anything otherwise they were on the run.

Now with two people, a lot of the ways Niko made his escapes were out of the question. And a part of him was wondering if he should just let Azura go. Those guards probably would be able to help her, or at least she would be able to find someone else that was more help than he was. But, and Niko could admit that it was selfish of him, he didn’t want to lose Azura. He had only been with her for less than an hour, but there was something about her… Something that told him that they should stick together. 

Maybe it was just in his head.

“What do we do?” Azura asked as Niko and her traveled along the Marketplace. 

“I don’t know!” Niko answered in a panic, glancing behind him to see that Hemlock and Oleander was still in sight. 

Unfortunately for Niko, while he was running he was too busy focusing on what was behind him, that he never bothered to check what was in front of him. That was, until…

“Niko!” 

Azura came to a sudden halt, jerking Niko back just as he was about to run right off of the docks. He stared, wide eyed down at the water that he had nearly run right into. The realization hitting him.

He had gotten the two of them cornered.

He turned around, noticing that Hemlock and Oleander weren’t in sight.

But he could still hear their yells.

“Crapcrapcrap,” Niko muttered, glancing around. “What do we do? What can we do?” 

“You said those people wanted you dead, right?” Azura asked her, her voice strangely calm for a woman who had gotten herself wanted by the guards by association. 

“Yeah… I may have stolen a few things… escaped from jail a few times…” Niko admitted, waiting for the girl to suddenly drop his hand in disgust.

But she didn’t.

“I have an idea of where we can hide.”

Niko looked over towards Azura in surprise, seeing her blue eyes narrowed in determination.

“Wh-where?”

“The ships.” Azura answered, looking over towards him, she pointed towards the nearest ship. There was seemingly no one near it, “It doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere, we’ll hope onboard, and leave once we figure it’s safe.”

It wasn’t the best plan, but it was better than anything Niko could think of.

“Don’t call attention to yourself,” Azura whispered, as she took charge and began to be the one who dragged Niko around. 

The two of them kept their heads down, and luckily no one seemed to notice that they were they. 

Guessing walking brought less attention onto yourself than running. Who knew?

Sneaking past all of the people, they were easily able to make it to the gangway.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Niko whispered looking around, “What if one of the people that work on this ship notice us?”

“Hope that they don’t.” Azura answered, as they stepped onto it. They quickened their steps while they were on the gangway, but no one gave them a second glance as they arrived onto the deck.

“Now what?” Niko asked, looking around the ship they had just entered. 

Niko hadn’t been on a lot of ships in his life, but for some reason something told him that this wasn’t a ship for travel, shipping, or the army. Though he wasn’t entirely sure what brought him to that conclusion.

Maybe it was the apple on the ship’s sail. That could be a good clue, what kind of ship decorated its sail with an apple? 

“Umm…” Azura looked around, before she pointed towards a door. “We’ll go inside, there’s no way they will go inside there… Right?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” Niko answered as he allowed himself to be dragged over to the door, and then through it. 

Once inside the two of them stuck closer together, neither knowing exactly what they were dealing with. Or if they were alone on the ship. They hoped so, but you never know. 

Their wandering eventually lead them to a small room that was full of food. Their storage room, Niko realized as he closed the door behind them.

“Back here!” Azura said, leading him to a cluster of rather large boxes. The two of them crouched behind it as they stopped to catch their breath.

“How long are we going to be staying here?” Niko asked her, and Azura shrugged.

“I didn’t think that far ahead…” She chuckled, the two glanced at one another before exhaustion hit them like a tidal wave and before they knew it everything went dark...


	2. The New Crew Members

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Azura and Niko find themselves to be stowaways on the ship. Hoping to stay hidden until the ship lands again, the two prey that they won't get caught.  
> Unfortunately, plans never work the way you want them to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEW CHARACTERS  
> (Note: I've listed the names in order of when a character is addressed by it.)  
> Andy: Bidoof  
> Clytia: Sunflora  
> The Captain: Wigglytuff  
> Louis: Loudred  
> Joey: Corphish  
> Antonio: Chatot  
> Dolce: Antonio's pet macaw. She helps watch over the ship, and makes sure that the mates are doing what they're supposed to.   
> Elizabeth: An OC created for this story to add to the crew. Dugtrio's wife, and Diglet's mother.  
> Terence: Dugtrio  
> Noah: Diglet  
> Suzi: Chimecho  
> Adonis: Croagunk

Azura woke to the sounds of Niko puking.

Eyes fluttering open, she frowned at all of the crates that surrounded her before looking over to her new companion. Eyebrows raised as she noticed him keeled over as he expelled the contents of his stomach.

“Are you alright?” She asked him, and once he was finished Niko looked over towards her. Giving her a soft smile.

“Yeah… Guess I’m just seasick.”

Seasick.

Sea… sick?

Their eyes widened. 

“Crap!” Niko cried out as he stumbled to his feet, which turned out to be a bad idea as he suddenly stopped. His face looking incredibly green.

“Sit down,” Azura ordered, and all he did was nod before he practically collapsed to the floor. Once she was certain he was down, and not about to dry heave, she walked over towards one of the windows in the small room they were in. Looking out all she saw… was sea. Sea, sea, and more sea. And it was moving, which told her the only thing she needed to know.

“We’re moving…” She whispered, turning towards Niko. “The ship… It’s sailing.”

“You mean… we’re stowaways?” Niko asked, “No…. No! Do you know what they do to stowaways on ships!” 

“Keep your voice down!” Azura hushed, kneeling in front of him. “They can’t do anything to us if they don’t know we’re here. We’ll just stay quiet, and hidden, and once the ship docks again we can sneak off.”

Niko nodded, “Okay… okay. So… what do we do then?”

Azura shrugged, “Wait, I suppose.”

“Wait. Yeah, okay.” Niko sighed, he leaned back against a crate, his hand reached into the pocket of his pants, to pulled something out.

Azura watched curiously as he studied the object. From her point of view, it just looked like a plain old rock. But he had a soft, almost loving look on his face as he looked at it.

“What’s that?”

Niko jumped, glancing over towards her as if he had somehow managed to forget she was there from the sight of the object. “Oh, this?” He asked, looking down at it once more. He seemed to be contemplating something before he scooted closer to her, holding it out for her to get a close look.

It was some sort of stone, a blueish-grey color. It was larger than the stones you would find on a beach, around the same size as Niko’s palm. Azura figured that someone had chipped the rock away from a bigger stone, smoothing down one end so that they could pain it with the indescribable pattern of curves that was on it.

“I call it a Relic Fragment.” Niko explained. “it’s a family heirloom that’s been passed down from generation to generation. No one knows what it’s for, but do you see that strange pattern on it?”

Azura nodded.

“I think it’s something important. Maybe it’s a historical artifact leading to a brand new world… Like Atlantis!” He smiled, “Ever since my Mama gave it to me, my dream has been to figure out where it came from. To find it it’s secrets.” He smiled down at it, stroking the stone for a bit before he put it away in his pocket.

“I think that’s a great dream.” Azura told him, and Niko looked up at her with a smile. Before that smile disappeared, his eyes widening as he looked past her.

“Azura…”

“What?”

Niko pointed behind her, and Azura turned her head to look. Jumping as her eyes met the dark beady eyes of… a bird?

It a pretty large bird, it’s feathers a multitude of gorgeously colorful feathers. Yellow, blue, but mostly red. A macaw she recognized. Though she didn’t understand how she could recognize a species of bird, but not remember who she was. The world was cruel sometimes.

She was also curious about how it got in there, she was certain they had closed the door behind them.

The bird tilted its head for a moment, eyeing the two of them. Before… “SQUAWK! STOWAWAYS! SQUAWK!”

Azura and Niko yelped at it’s yelling.

“Hush!” Azura hurried, reaching out her hands to… She wasn’t entirely sure. But the bird lifted its wings, launching itself into the air as it began to circle around their heads. 

“SQUAWK! STOWAWAYS! SQUAWK!”

The door to the storage room they were hiding in opened. And in came a man.

The first thing Azura noticed about him was that he was round. His dark brown hair curled around his too large ears, his nose a bulbous thing spotted with round freckles. Even his short body was incredibly round. And she recognized him.

_ “Gosh, I’m sorry, but I don’t know her. But I’m certain you’ll find someone who does, yup!” _

He was one of the people Niko and Azura had talked to in the Marketplace, hoping that he would know who she was. He was frozen in the doorway, but stumbled forward when two more people came in.

One was another Azura recognized. She was tall and thin. Her golden blonde hair pulled back and covered by a bandana. Her skin was tanned from the sun, and her face much like the man was spotted with freckles. She had seemed friendly when she had called for the man back at the Marketplace.

Not so much here.

And with her was a man who towered about the other two. Made of pure muscle. His skin was the darkest she had ever seen, and his head completely bald. Like the other man, he had a rather bulbous nose. Though, despite his dark skin, for some reason his nose looked red. Maybe he had a cold? There was something about him that seemed friendly though, perhaps it was his eyes. Maybe it was that he seemed to have a bit more weight into his stomach. Azura didn’t really know.

“Andy!” The girl said, the round man turning to face her. “Go alert the Captain!”

The man, Andy nodded, giving the two of them one last look before he darted past his companions. 

The other two, however, stepped nearer.

Despite the size of the man, Azura couldn’t help but find the girl to be much more intimidating than him. 

The bird that had alerted the people to their presence, flew out after the round man. Leaving them all alone with the two people that were closing in on them.

“What are you doing in here?” The girl demanded.

“We’re sorry, it was an accident!” Niko said, holding his hands in surrender.

“How do you accidently stowaway on a ship?” The man asked, crossing his arms.

“Uh… Long story?” Azura said, wincing. You should never answer a question with a question.

The girl sneered, before looking towards her companion. “Find some rope.” She instructed, before pulling something from her belt. 

A gun. 

Azura’s heart dropped.

“Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way.” She told them, as the man happened to find some rope. “Stand up.”

Azura and Niko did as they were told.

“Now hold out your hands.”

When they did, the man came over to them. Tying the rope around their wrists so that they were unable to use them properly. 

“Clytia!” 

The woman’s head snapped around as a new man came whirling around the corner. This man had bright orange hair, that seemed to defy gravity as it stood up. Much like her, he wore a bandana as well. Though this one was wrapped around his forehead in a decorate fashion, compared to the girl who used it to hold back her hair that was too short to be tied up. His face was also dotted with freckles, and his eyes danced between her, Azura, and Niko. 

“Are they the…” 

The girl, Clytia, nodded. 

“Antonio said to bring them to the deck.” The man told her, “Everyone else is up there.”

“You heard him,” Clytia said, glaring towards Azura and Niko. “Get going.” 

Azur and Niko began to walk, Clytia and the man going in behind them so that they could force them to move.

The ginger man stepped aside from the doorway as they were pushed out. There was a flash of sympathy on his face before it hardened, and he joined his shipmates as they lead them up.

Luckily, Azura and Niko remembered how to get up to the deck, so there was a minimal amount of pushing, before the ginger ran ahead to open the door behind them.

Azura and Niko blinked as they were brought out, the moon shining above seemed impossibly bright and the smell of sea almost overbearing as they stepped out. Their eyes landing on a group that was in the middle of the deck. A brief count told Azura that there were seven people on the deck. Add that to the three they were with, told her that there were ten people that worked on this ship.

That seemed a little small to her. 

There were two people that stood out the most to them. Mostly because the others were split to the side so that Azura and Niko really could only notice them. Though Azura noticed the man from before, Andy standing a bit closer to one of the men than the others.

The first one she noticed had hair that looked like it was made from pure gold. It curled around his head, and there was a lock that stuck out the most, defying gravity as it towered over the rest of his head. His eyes were bright blue, and weirdly friendly considering the circumstances. He grinned at them as they came closer, his hands held loosely against his sides. The clothes he was wearing were bright pink, and unlike anyone else his clothes were ones that showed power.

The captain, she realized.

The man besides him was the only one who wasn’t standing. Instead he was seated on a crate, and considering his feet were dangling even while he was on a crate, she was able to figure he was probably doing that for added height more than anything. He had long black hair that was tied up away from his face, save for a few traiturious strands. Unlike the others, he wasn’t looking at Azura or Niko. Instead his focus was on the bird that had betrayed their position. While she couldn’t understand, she could hear mumbled words as he spoke to the bird that nuzzled up against him. A cracker held in its talons. 

“Hello friendly friends!” The captain greeted, his voice light and friendly. 

Behind her, Clytia kicked Azura’s ankle, and from Niko’s wince she could only guess that the other man did so too.

“Hello.” They greeted, which caused the captain’s already wide smile to widen more.

Azura didn’t realize that was physically possible. 

“So, how did the two of you get on my ship?” He asked, cutting straight to the point.

“Well…” Niko started, and Azura could tell he was trying to come up with an excuse.

“It was my fault, sir.” Azura spoke up, causing Niko to look towards her with a frown. “We… We were getting chased by some guards, and I figured the best place to hide was a ship…” She bit her lip, realizing that the story sounded a bit dumb. “We meant to get off before you set sail, but we… kinda…”

“Fell asleep.” Niko finished. 

“So it was an accident?” The captain asked.

Azura and Niko nodded. 

“Okay!” The Captain said, “Untie them.”

“What?” Azura frowned, and she could hear the other crew members mumble to themselves. 

“Is the captain really going to believe that story?” One asked in a hushed voice.

“It sounds made up to me.” Another said.

“I think I’ve seen that guy before.” Another muttered. 

The Captain frowned once he said that no one had stepped up, he opened his mouth to speak.

“WAIT!”

Azura saw Niko’s eyes widen, as a man with ashy brown hair stepped from the crew. He pointed towards Niko.

“That’s HIM!” He accused, “He’s the guy that STOLE the ship’s money from me!”

“Ah…” Niko chuckled nervously, “You recognized me… whoops…” 

“Louis.” 

The ashy brown haired man’s mouth snapped shut, as the man with the parrot finally decided to look away from the bird to give him a harsh glare.

“How many times must I tell you to keep that obnoxiously loud voice of yours quiet?”

“But he’s the one that STOLE-”

“You can have it back!” Niko interrupted, everyone turning to look towards him. “My pocket… it’s in there. I swear I didn’t spend any of the money in there either!”

“You stole money, and then didn’t spend it?” Parrot Man asked. 

“I… I was going to… But my friend had other plans, and then I met Azura, and... “ Niko shrugged. 

The man sighed, turning towards Andy who was next to him. “Go get it.”

“Yes, sir!” Andy nodded, stumbling forward he went up to Niko. 

“That one,” Niko said, tilting his head to indicate which pocket. 

Andy hesitated, before he reached in. Pulling out a small bag, he went back and handed it towards Parrot Man. He took it, and opened it to check what was inside. 

“You swear you didn’t spend any?” He asked, closing the bag.

“No señor.”

He nodded, “Joey, the Captain’s order.” 

“Ah! Right!” The ginger haired man said, rushing around he pulled a knife from his belt. Quickly slashing through the ropes that bound Azura and Niko. 

The two tested out their newly freed limbs. Even though they were tied for a short amount of time, they still felt sore. 

“So what are we going to do with them, Captain?” Clytia spoke up, as she stepped out from behind them so that she was standing next to Azura.

“Well… If they didn’t mean to get on our ship, we should bring them back home!” The Captain declared, clapping his hands. “You two are from Esperanza, right?”

Niko nodded, and noticing, Azura nodded as well. 

“Well that’s great! We usually try and stop there at least once every one to two weeks.” He told them, “Since we just left it might be awhile, but you’ll be home soon.”

“So we’re just going to let them stay with us?” Louis demanded, crossing his arms as he glared towards Niko. “That guy’s a thief, I doubt he has any money to pay us back for the ride!” 

“We have plenty of work they can do.” The Parrot Man shrugged, his eyes staring into them.

There was something about the way he was looking towards her in particular that Azura didn’t like. Though she didn’t know what. “What are your names?”

“Uh… I’m Niko.” Niko stuttered. 

“My name is Azura.”

The strange look he was given to her, somehow managed to intensify. Though for what reason, Azura couldn’t figure out. 

Azura quickly looked away from him, her eyes landing on Niko. She frowned when she noticed he had a strange look on his face as well. As if he was thinking about something. 

“You… You said that you have plenty of work for us, right?” Niko slowly asked. 

“Do we look like we have enough crewmembers to smoothly run a ship?” Parrot Man asked. 

“Well… If you need an extra pair of hands, maybe I could…”

There was a pause, and the Captain’s face somehow managed to brighten further. 

“You wanna work for us?” He asked.

Niko winced, “I mean… As he said,” Niko glanced over towards Louis. “I’m a thief… With my record it’s… not easy finding work. Especially since I look…”

“You look like you’re from Rovina.” The Captain nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah… I can see why that might make work hard.”

“With what happened, going back could be dangerous.” Parrot Man added, though his eyes didn’t stray from Azura. 

“Are you sure you want to join us?” The Captain asked. “You don’t even know what we do.”

“If I can make money here, I don’t really care.” Niko answered. “Ever since my mother…” he paused, shaking his head, “It’s been eat to survive, steal to eat. It’s been tough, and I’ve been thrown into prison more times than I can count. And if I ever get caught again… It’s straight to the gallows for me.” 

“Niko, do you know what we are?” The Captain asked again. Niko shook his head. “We’re pirates.”

“P-Pirates?” Niko asked, eyes widening.

The Captain nodded, “Joining us, you would still be stealing. Maybe even worse. You’ll still be a criminal… you’ll be considered worse than a common thief. Just by being a crewmember on this boat, everyone here has a bounty on their head. Nothing would really change.”

Niko glanced around the boat for a moment, looking thoughtful. “One thing would change…” He said, before he looked at the Captain. “My… My mind hasn’t been changed.” He said, and suddenly Azura felt pressure on her hand. She glanced down, noticing that Niko had grabbed hers. “Please, let my join your crew!”

There was a pause.

“Then, welcome aboard!” the Captain greeted, clasping his hands together. Azura could hear the other crew members mutter to themselves. She looked over towards Niko then, a thought forming in her head. 

They were pirates…

Pirates who committed crimes…

Who… sailed the sea.

That went everywhere…

And somewhere there had to be someone…

“I want to join too!” She spoke up, and the Captain’s eyes went to her. 

“Oh?”

“Azura! But what about-” Niko began.

“Niko’s my friend…” She interrupted, “If he’s here, then I want to be here too!”

_ I want to know who I am. _

_ And even though no one in Esperanza knows who I am. _

_ Someone out there must.  _

_ I have to find them. _

“In that case,” The Captain turned to face Parrot Man. “Antonio!”

He nodded, hopping off of the crate he was sitting on. The parrot leaping off his shoulder at the movement, waiting for him to be situated on his feet before landed once more. 

Apparently Azura’s guess that he sat on the crate for extra height was true. 

“Come with me,” He motioned to the two, before turning to the other crew members. “Get to work!”

They dispersed. 

Azura and Niko waited for Antonio to walk past them until they followed. Leading them through the same door they had come from, he waited until the door shut behind them before he began to speak. 

“The ship’s name is  _ The Perfect Apple.” _

At that, Niko’s eyes widened. “The P- I’ve heard of this ship!” He realized, “It’s one of the most infamous pirate ships in the world!” 

Antonio glanced back at them. “Yes, we have built up quite a reputation.” He looked away, “The Captain bought this ship fifteen years ago, and over the years we have built up this crew. It may seem small, but while he might not seem like it, the Captain is very picky about who he lets on this boat. Since the two of you are new, I’ll put Clytia in charge of the two of you. She’s the Master Gunner.”

“Master Gunner?” Niko questions, Antonio looked over his shoulder towards him. “The one in charge of our canons.” 

“Oh.”

“Admittedly, they’re much smaller than those on a normal pirate ship. But since our crew is so small, we don’t have enough people to safely man a normal sized canon. So we’re stuck with what we’ve got. While a lot of people on this ship have specialties, we do sometimes take you out in order to make up people. Because you’re new, we’ll have you switch every so often from the canons to lookout.”

“Lookout?” Niko asked.

“The ones who watch the sea for any obstacles or land.” Antonio answered, “Normally Louis and Noah are the ones that do that. But since Noah is so young, we don’t like having him up there all of the time. Usually on the days we take him from lookout he’s helping either his mother or father with their jobs. Speaking of…” 

Antonio stopped outside of a door. “This is the medical bay.” He told them. “Elizabeth, Noah’s mother, is our doctor. If you ever get hurt you will report to her  _ immediately.  _ What might seem like a small injury could easily turn deadly. Eventually I’ll have Andy give you two a tour of the ship, but I would rather not have the two of you running around who knows where right now. The only reason I’m telling you where Elizabeth is, is because this is quite possible the most important room on this ship.”

“You’ll begin work tomorrow,” Antonio continued. “Clytia will be waking the two of you up. She’s well aware that new crewmembers instantly go to her, so she already knows what to do. Until then…” He paused in front of a door, before pushing it open. 

Inside were most of the crewmembers they had seen before, all of them stopping with their chatting as they watched them come in.

“This is where you’ll be sleeping,” Antonio told them. “There should be some free hammocks for you two to sleep in. Get to sleep early, you never know how much you might get.”

Azura and Niko nodded, and stepped inside. Feeling incredibly awkward as they stood there.

“Azura.”

She turned to face Antonio, due to the lighting much of his face was hidden in shadow, and he didn’t even seem to be looking at her.

“I wish to speak to you. Alone.” 

Azura bit her lip, glancing over towards Niko who shrugged.

Not knowing what else to do, Azura followed Antonio out of the room. 

He lead her to another room, this one was smaller than some of the other rooms she had entered. Azura noticed that there were a few weapons lying around. Realizing that this room was where they kept that type of thing. She frowned as she looked at it, she opened her mouth to speak-

“Do you take us for fools?”

She blinked, spinning around to face Antontio who glowered at her. Azura took a step back, his voice was harsh. About as harsh as it had been when he had spoken to Louis about his volume. 

“Wha-” 

“I don’t know why the Captain has chosen to trust you,” he continued, not allowing her to speak. “And while I do trust his judgement, what I don’t trust is  _ you.”  _

“Listen, I-“

“No.  _ You  _ listen. And listen closely. I will tolerate you and that boy being on my ship.” Antonio walked closer, causing Azura to stumble back. “But as long as you are on here, Dolce and I will be watching you two  _ very  _ closely.”

The bird on his shoulder puffed up, and Azura couldn’t help but feel that it was also trying to intimidate her. “I don’t know why you decided to come on this boat. But don’t think for a moment that this naive mask you’re wearing is tricking me. Your name, those clothes you’re wearing. I know exactly who you really are, Azura. And I know what power you hold, and the damage you can cause this ship and the people on it. If I even hear a rumor of you planning an attack, a whisper. If you put even a toe out of line, you and that boy will be kicked off this ship quicker than you could say ‘Lo siento.’ And I don’t care if we’re in the middle of the ocean when we do it. Am I understood?”

“I-“

“Am. I. Under. Stood.” 

Azura nodded, swallowing nervously. 

“No hables de esto con nadie.” He growled, before spinning around. His ponytail whipping around at the movement as he left. Slamming the door behind him.

Azura started at the door for a moment, a million thoughts running through her head. But there was one that kept coming back. 

_ He knows who I am. _

Shaking her head, Azura cautiously opened the door. Looking back and forth to make sure Antonio wasn’t nearby before she went back into the crewmember’s quarters.

“Azura!” Niko greeted with a wave. He was seated on the floor in a circle with some of the crewmembers. Andy, Clytia, and Joey, she recognized. Though there was another she didn’t know the name of. His hair was black, the locks falling in his face. His skin was pale white, and he wore nothing but a pair of ragged paints, and bandages wrapped around his arms and torso.

Niko held up a hand of cards that he was holding, “Wanna play?”

Azura shook her head, but she took a seat next to him. Glancing at his hand as she did so.

“Are you alright?”

Azura jumped, looking over towards Clytia. She had a soft, friendly smile on her face. She seemed much more friendly than before.

“Yeah… I…” She shook her head, looking away.

”What did Antonio do this time?” And her head jerked to look towards a woman in a hammock. 

Her skin was even darker than the man she had met in the storage room. Which Azura didn’t realize was possible. Her hair hung around her face, styled into dreadlocks that swung freely. Her eyes were kind, a mischievous smirk plastered on her face.

“How-“

“Listen Sweetie, whatever he said. Don’t worry about it.” She assured Azura. “That boy is all bark and no bite, whatever it is that is worrying that pretty brow of yours just forget it. Okay hun?”

Azura nodded.

“I should probably introduce myself,” the woman continued. “My name is Elizabeth.”

“The Doctor.” Azura realized.

She nodded, “But you can just call me Liz, alright honey?”

Azura nodded.

“And you already met my useless lug of a husband. He’s Terrence, he’s our navigator. And that over there,” Liz pointed towards a young looking boy. He almost looked exactly like Liz, though his hair was in tight curls that surrounded his face. “Is my boy Noah.”

Noah raised a hand in greeting.

“He usually is at the outlook with Louis. The boy your friend there stole money from.” Azura glances over towards Niko who blushed. Looking away. “Louis is at the Outlook right now.”

“Oh, that’s right!” Clytia dropped her cards, clasping her hands together. “I almost forgot that we should introduce ourselves! I’m Clytia, the Master Gunner. If you need something blown up, I’m your girl.”

“I’m Joey,” the ginger spoke up. “The boatswain. I do all the maintenance and am in charge of the anchor and sail. Stuff like that.”

“I’m Suzi.” Another woman spoke up. She was heavyset, with blonde hair spilling over her shoulders. “I’m the one that cooks everyone’s meals.”

“I’m Adonis.” One of the card players spoke up. “That’s all you need to know.”

“And I’m Andy!” The last person piped up. “I’m a mate, like the two of you.”

“It’s nice to meet you all!” Niko said, smiling at all of them. He frowned for a moment, “So what does Antonio do?”

“He’s the Quartermaster,” Andy answered, “He’s…” He frowned, trying to figure out how best to describe the position. “Basically in charge of everything.” 

“Wonderful.” Azura muttered under her breath, gaining her a strange look from Niko. She just smiled at him. 

“It’s about time for bed,” Liz announced, clapping her hands together. She pointed towards two hammocks. “Those are free for you two, get to bed early. You never know when you’re going to have to wake up.” 

Azura and Niko, nodded. They stood up and went over to their hammocks as everyone else got ready. Sitting on them, Niko turned to Azura. A smile on his face.

“Isn’t this exciting, Azura?” He asked her over the noise. “I don’t know why you decided to join me, but I’m really glad you did. I’m so excited about tomorrow, that I can’t even imagine getting to sleep.” He looked out the window they were near, his face highlighted by the light of the moon. He looked back over towards her, “Goodnight Azura.”

And the candles were blown out.

But as she lay down, the darkness blinding her, Azura was lost in thought.

_ Who was she? _

_ Where did she come from? _

_ What would she do when she figured it out? _

_ And, if she happened to be the person Antonio thought she was, why did he hate her so much? _

But soon her thoughts fluttered off as she drifted away into the land of dreams. 

* * *

“WAKE UP!” Azura’s eyes snapped open, as she started from the sudden noise. Her movement causing the hammock she was lying in to tip over, dispensing her onto the floor.

There was another thump, and as she pulled herself onto her hands, she looked over to see Niko had fallen out as well. 

Everyone else in the room groaned, and she glanced over towards the door to see the ashy-brown haired man from before. He glared at everyone, but she noticed that his glare lingered on Niko the longest. In the morning light, she noticed more about him than she did the other day. He seemed to have a pretty severe underbite, and his clothes weren’t as nice as some of the other people’s. Compared to everyone else, he probably didn’t care so much for his appearance. His skin looked almost leathery from too much sun, with some of it looking bright red.

A sunburn. 

He gave everyone one last glare, before stalking out.

“Geez, what’s his problem?” Niko asked, sitting him from where he had landed. 

“He’s on the night-shift.” Clytia answered, as she hopped out of her hammock. She moved her hands to grab the bottom of her shirt, and Azura’s face turned bright red as she quickly looked away from her. Watching that Niko had lifted his hands to cover his eyes.

“Aww!” Clytia’s voice cooed, “You two are so cute!” Azura risked a peak over to her, and instantly regretted it upon seeing Clytia’s naked chest. “Don’t worry, you two will be used to seeing everyone naked eventually!” She assured them, and Azura noticed that her words had some truth to them. As everyone that was in the room were getting out of the pajamas they were wearing to dress for the day.

She glanced over towards Niko. Neither of them had any clothes to change into. 

Azura glanced down towards the nightgown she was wearing, suddenly feeling quite embarrassed by it.

After everyone had gotten dressed, Azura and Niko took off after them. Following close behind Clytia, as that’s what they had been told yesterday. However, they found that they didn’t need to, as everyone headed in the same direction.

Azura and Niko recoiled once they reached the deck, the bright sun blinding them for a moment before they continued out into the day. 

The Captain and Antonio were already on the deck. The Captain was just standing there with a sort of dazed look in his eyes, while Antonio was back on his crate. This time sitting cross-legged on top of it as he spoke softly to the parrot. Dolce, Azura remembered him calling it. 

He then looked up from the bird to watch them all file in. His eyes narrowing as he met Azura’s. She quickly looked away, clenching the sides of her nightgown.

Everyone grouped up around them, and once everything was quiet, Antonio hopped down from the crate. 

“Alright everyone,” he announced, “We should be at sea for awhile, however do to some… unexpected circumstances,” He gave a pointed look towards Azura and Niko, “We’re planning on docking at a town as soon as possible for enough supplies to handle two more people. Unless we happen to get attacked by other ships today should be uneventful. With that being said, it’s standard duties today.” He then turned towards the Captain, “Do you have anything you’d like to add, Captain?”

“Zzzz… Zzzz… Snorfle… Zzz…” He snored, and Azura found herself jumping as she realized he somehow was asleep. With his eyes closed. While standing.

It was impressive and creepy at the same time.

“The Captain never fails to amaze me.” Liz whispered with an amused shake of her head. 

“Yeah, you got that right.” Louis smirked as he crossed his arms in amusement. 

“Yup, it looks like he’s wide awake.” Andy observed. 

“Eek! His eyes are wide open, but he’s fast asleep!” Clytia giggled, holding a hand to her mouth to stifle the sound. 

“Thank you, Captain, we all appreciate your… words of wisdom.” Antonio sighed, before looking over towards everyone. “Alright, morning cheers! One!”

“DON’T SHIRK WORK!” Everyone yelled, startling Azura and Niko.

“Two!”

“RUN AWAY… AND PAY!”

“Three!”

“SMILES GO FOR MILES!”

“Alright everyone, get to work!”

“HOORAY!”

Azura and Niko watched as everyone began to go their separate ways. A small part of them was amazed by how together everyone was.

They never expected a pirate ship to have morning cheers.

“Azura, Niko!” Clytia smiled as she went up to them, Andy following close behind her. “You two are going to be with me for the time being, alright?”

They nodded. 

“Wonderful! I’ll try teaching you two some of the basic skills you’ll need to know while on this boat.” She informed them, “Depending on what you already know, of course.”

She and Andy began to walk off, so Azura and Niko began to follow them. As they made their way back into the ship Clytia continued speaking. 

“Just so you know, sea battles are a pretty common occurrence for us. Being one of the most feared pirate ships of the world can do that. There are so many people that want to take us down just so they can brag that they were the ones that defeated us.” She explained as they made their way lower than Azura and Niko had seen yet. “The cannons are our first line of defense. Which is what you two will be using during the attacks. But eventually the other ship might get closer, and they might board.” She shook her head, “We never board their ships. It’s easier to fight when you’re familiar with the area you’re fighting in. Once they’re on board we abandon the cannons, and go help fight. With me so far?”

“Yeah.” Niko answered.

“Have either of you fought with a gun or blade before?” She asked, glancing back at them.

Azura and Niko shook their heads. 

“I’m just going to have to teach you then.” She hummed to herself. “Maybe we should start with that before we do cannons. Yeah… I think that might be the best thing to do.” Clytia turned to Andy, “Go report to Antonio, I’m not going to need you today but he might. Also tell him that I’m training the newbies to fight.”

“Yup!” Andy nodded, before he turned and went off to who knows where. 

Clytia stopped at the door to the weapon storage room, and went inside. Azura and Niko followed her. Being familiar with the room in a way, Azura held back as Niko began to look around in amazement. While he did that Clytia began to dig through their supplies. Grabbing two guns, she set them aside before glancing towards them.

“Swords or knives?”

“What?” Niko asked, a bit distracted. 

“Probably swords.” Clytia turned back, and went to a rack that was full of swords. “They’re easier to fight with. Especially for beginners.” She pulled two of them out, and handed them to Azura and Niko.

Azura hesitated before she took one, Niko taking the after. 

Clytia then turned towards a piece of paper that was lying on a table, walking to the table she picked up a quill that was placed next to it and began to scribble something down.

“What are you doing?” Niko asked.

“Just telling Antonio that we took some items.” Clytia answered as she set the quill down. “He’s in charge of inventory, so he wants to be informed when we take things.”

“Oh.” 

Clytia picked up the two guns, smirking at the two as she walked past. Azura and Niko falling in step right behind her. She lead them back up to the deck, where she set aside the two guns on the crate Antonio had been sitting on before. 

She then grabbed two more barrels, these ones marked with red circles in paint.

“These are our targets,” She explained as she got them in position. “I’m going to have the two of you try out the guns for a few minutes, before you’ll practice with the swords. Alright?”

Azura and Niko nodded, in which Clytia clapped. “Wonderful! Let’s get started!

* * *

Training with Clytia had been pretty fun, Azura had to admit. Though at one point during their training Antonio had come up to watch their progress. (To watch  _ her  _ Azura realized with a start. Causing her to completely miss the target.)

At one point they stopped their practice to have lunch. Azura was pleasantly surprised to find that their food was incredibly delicious. She didn’t expect that for a pirate ship. Something told her that Suzi’s cooking was actually better than anything she had ever had before. And another told her that that was an impressive feat. 

Once lunch was over it was time to get back to training. This time with the swords.

“Wait… You want us to FIGHT each other?” Niko asked, eyes wide as soon as Clytia finished.

She nodded, “We don’t have any dummies to practice sword fighting, so you’ll just have to try and not kill each other.” 

“Uh… That’s not reassuring.” 

“It’ll be fine. I’ll just send you to Liz if anything happens.” Clytia waved Niko’s concern off. 

Not knowing what else to do, Azura and Niko grabbed the swords. And they faced off against each other. As they began their fight Clytia started yelling tips towards them in order to help them fix what they were doing. 

There was the sound of fluttering wings, and Azura lost focus. 

“Ow!”

“Azura!” Niko dropped the sword, eyes wide. “Oh no, I’m sorry!” 

“It… It’s fine.” She assured him, grabbed at her now bleeding arm. However, her eyes didn’t stray away from the new pair of eyes that had arrived. “I’m fine. Sorry… I lost focus.”

“I think that’s enough for the swords today.” Clytia said, gently taking the sword that Azura was holding. “You should probably head to Liz.”

“Yeah… Just…” Azura frowned, and used her uninjured arm, “What’s up with that bird?”

“Hmm?” Clytia looked around, her eyes landing on Dolce whom was sitting on the taffrail. “Dolce? She’s Antonio’s. I think she helps him watch over the ship, since he can’t be everywhere at once.” She shook her head, “That’s not important though. C’mon, let’s get you to Liz. Okay?”

Azura nodded, letting Clytia take her away as Niko followed. Blubbering apologies the entire walk. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may love Chatot with every fiber of my being.  
> But even I can admit sometimes, he can be an asshole.


End file.
